If you don't already, it's time to turn step verification (2SV) on for all your online accounts. Sure, some people say it takes too long or makes signing into your accounts difficult, but that's exactly how you want it—difficult for someone to sign into!
Jokes aside, the benefits of switching 2SV on are remarkable, and adding another security layer can only be a good thing.
Google concurs, finding that accounts with 2SV enabled are 50 percent less likely to experience a breach than those without.
So, if you're still putting off switching 2SV on, the only question is, "Why?"
A 50 Percent Decrease in Compromised Accounts
The headline figure comes from a recent Google study on implementing and encouraging users to switch on 2SV. Back in 2021, Google began auto-enrolling users in its two-step verification security. The result is that more than 150 million more users are now using 2SV to protect their online accounts, along with 2 million YouTube creator accounts.
The result of this effort is a "50% decrease in accounts being compromised among those users," something directly measurable by Google. Considering the numbers at play here, that's a significant security boost for millions of users.
Instead of waiting for people to change and begin taking the small extra steps to protect their user data, Google took it for them. Now, some will definitely disagree with this and say that it's big tech overstepping the mark. Maybe they're right; this article isn't exploring those ideas.
What is clear is that Google's security drive has secured the accounts of millions of users that may have otherwise found their credentials, personal data, banking info, and anything else of value stolen straight from their account.
2SV and 2FA Are Fast, Easy, and Protect Your Accounts
A 50 percent decrease in account breaches is a lovely figure, but what does that mean for you? Should you go and switch on 2SV or 2FA (two-factor authentication) to protect your accounts?
In a word, yes. Go and do it now.
The benefits of using either of these additional (yet similar) login verification methods are well documented. Both two-factor authentication and two-step verification protect you against intrusion, and while they're not 100 percent foolproof, they're an order of magnitude better than doing nothing.
So, if you haven't already, it's time to enable 2SV or 2FA on your online accounts. Google's 2SV auto-enrolment scheme will continue throughout 2022, but you don't have to wait for them to sign you up.